Plan for pedestrian circus

This could be the future look of Piccadilly Circus under plans to revitalise the West End.

The proposal would create more space for pedestrians - with less room for traffic - and a new spire sculpture to rival Eros.

Drawn up by the architects behind the new Wembley and Arsenal stadiums, the plans are already winning influential support.

Annie Walker, director of the Regent Street Association, said: "I do think that pedestrianisation makes an enormous improvement. People meet there from all over the world but it's a rather disappointing sight. It could look absolutely amazing if treated properly."

The plans, put forward by architects HOK Sport in conjunction with Arup and Jones Lang LaSalle, were commissioned by the New West End Company (NWEC) - a regeneration body which will receive ?18million over the next three years from business rates to bring shoppers back to the area. A NWEC spokesman said a 200-page West End masterplan would be distributed for public consultation next month. "This is one idea out of many in the whole document," he said.

The spire option would see the circus forming the gateway to "Nash Ramblas", a pedestrian boulevard akin to Barcelona's Las Ramblas and endorsed by Ken Livingstone, stretching from the Nash terrace houses in Regent's Park to Regent Street. Eros, the GradeII listed Victorian monument to philanthropist Lord Shaftesbury, would take a more central position.

Business leaders say the area fails to live up to its reputation as a tourist attraction and welcomed moves to improve it for visitors and shoppers.

Sarah Porter, chief executive of the Heart of London business alliance, which worked with NWEC to commission-the masterplan, said: "It's about ensuring the area is a world-class attraction. We want to make sure we keep the Piccadilly Circus lights as well as the Eros statue." The plans would tie in with Transport for London'sproposals to change the layout of Piccadilly Circus - one of the busiest junctions in the West End.

TfL buses chief Peter Hendy is considering long-term plans for a two-way bus lane along the southern side of Piccadilly, extending along Piccadilly Circus. This would allow the north side of the circus to become a two-way local road and prevent the need to divert buses along side streets.

Westminster council "fully supports" NWEC's efforts to boost trade, but sources expressed concerns about an unelected organisation promoting a radical remodelling of the city centre.

NWEC played down the plans, saying that although the spire image was one of several design ideas, it was not a chosen solution. "This is not what is going to happen here," one source said. "We are far too committed to the heritage of London to allow anything to interfere with or detract from the impact of Eros in the circus. If anything, we would want to enhance its position."